Do Not Envy the Violent

📝Reflection

When we see someone get ahead by cheating, two feelings rise: anger and envy. What this verse warns against is the latter — envy. For the moment we envy, we have already chosen his path in our hearts. The Hebrew sage knew that ill-gotten success does not last, but more importantly, he wished our hearts not be stained by it. Confucius, too, said that wealth gained through injustice was to him like a floating cloud. Not to sell your slow honesty for another's fast success — that is the posture of one who endures.